Canoe and paddle support

Abstract

A canoe and paddle support to facilitate attachment of paddles to a canoe for storage, auto transport, and particularly portaging of the canoe. The invention has a body preferably made of a resilient material. The body has a lateral slot adapted to removably retain the thwart of a canoe, a longitudinal slot adapted to removably retain a canoe paddle and oriented in approximately perpendicular relation to the lateral slot, so that the paddle is held in an orientation approximately longitudinal with respect to the center line of the canoe, and a carrying surface facing downwardly when the thwart and the paddle are retained in the lateral and longitudinal slots and the canoe is inverted, the carrying surface being adapted to provide a convenient path for transmitting the weight of the canoe to the shoulders of the person transporting the canoe. The paddle supports are preferably used in pairs for securing each paddle to two spaced thwarts of the canoe and provide, in combination with the canoe and paddle, a stable support structure.

We claim: 
     
       1. A canoe and paddle support for use in combination with a canoe having laterally extending thwarts and a canoe paddle having an extended handle to provide a support for carrying the canoe and the paddle, comprising a body having: (a) a lateral slot adapted to receive and removably retain a thwart of the canoe,   (b) a longitudinal slot adapted to receive and removably retain the canoe paddle and having an approximately perpendicular orientation relative to the lateral slot, whereby the paddle may be held approximately longitudinal with respect to the center line of the canoe when the thwart is retained in the lateral slot, and   (c) a carrying surface facing downwardly and away from the canoe when the thwart is engaged in the lateral slot, the paddle is engaged in the longitudinal slot, and the canoe is inverted for carrying, whereby the carrying surface will provide a support surface for engagement by the shoulder of a person in supporting relation, and whereby the body will support the canoe on the shoulder of the person for carrying.   
     
     
       2. The canoe and paddle support specified in claim 1 wherein the carrying surface is contoured to conform to the shoulder of a person carrying the canoe. 
     
     
       3. The canoe and paddle support specified in claim 1 wherein the body is resilient polyethylene foam. 
     
     
       4. The canoe and paddle support of claim 1 wherein (a) the body is resilient and has an outer surface which includes the carrying surface, an upper surface, and a side surface,   (b) the longitudinal slot is defined by an internal surface extending longitudinally through the body to form an elongated first holding cavity and a first neck extending from the first holding cavity to the outer surface, the first holding cavity having a shape selected to correspond substantially to that part of the canoe paddle to be received therein and the first neck having a width narrower than the width of the first holding cavity, whereby a canoe paddle may be pushed through the first neck and into the first holding cavity and be retained therein, and   
     
     
       (c) the lateral slot is defined by an internal surface extending laterally through the body to form an elongated second holding cavity and a second neck extending from the second holding cavity to the upper surface, the second holding cavity having a shape selected to correspond substantially to that part of the thwart to be received therein and the second neck having a width narrower than the width of the second holding cavity, whereby the thwart may be pushed through the second neck into the second holding cavity and be retained therein. 
     
     
       5. The canoe and paddle support of claim 4 wherein the first holding cavity is generally cylindrical in shape and of a size selected to correspond substantially to the size of the extended handle of the canoe paddle to be received therein, and wherein the second holding cavity is generally cylindrical in shape and has a size selected to correspond substantially to the size of the thwart to be retained therein. 
     
     
       6. The canoe and paddle support of claim 4 wherein that part of the outer surface to which the first neck extends is the carrying surface. 
     
     
       7. The canoe and paddle support of claim 4 wherein that part of the outer surface to which the first neck extends is a side surface. 
     
     
       8. A canoe and paddle support for use in combination with a canoe having laterally extending thwarts and a canoe paddle having an extended handle to provide support for carrying the canoe and the paddle, comprising a resilient body having: (a) means for engaging and removably retaining a first thwart of the canoe,   (b) means for engaging and removably retaining the handle of the canoe paddle in an orientation approximately longitudinal with respect to the center line of the canoe when the thwart is engaged in the thwart engaging means, and   (c) a carrying surface facing downwardly and away from the canoe when the body is engaged on the thwart and the handle and the canoe is inverted for carrying, whereby the carrying surface will provide an extended support surface for engagement by the shoulder of a person in supporting relation, and whereby the body will support the paddle and the canoe on the shoulder of the person for carrying.   
     
     
       9. The canoe and paddle support specified in claim 8 wherein the canoe and paddle support is a shoulder pad unit, and including in combination therewith a pddle hold-down unit comprising a resilient body having: (a) means for engaging and removably retaining a second thwart of the canoe located in spaced relation to the first thwart, and   (b) means for engaging and removably retaining the extended handle of the canoe paddle whereby the paddle, the shoulder pad unit, and the paddle hold-down unit may be fastened and removably retained on the canoe in a fixed, longitudinally extended position.   
     
     
       10. The canoe and paddle support specified in claim 9 including a second shoulder pad unit and a second paddle hold-down unit, whereby the second paddle may be fastened to the canoe in substantially parallel relation to the first canoe paddle, whereby the paddles, the canoe, the shoulder pad units, and the paddle hold-down units may be removably retained in fixed, longitudinally extending position so that the shoulder pad units may be supported on the shoulders of a carrier of the canoe and the handles of the canoe paddles may be used as hand holds by the carrier for stabilizing the canoe as he carries it. 
     
     
       11. A kit for attaching a pair of paddles with extended handles to a canoe having a middle thwart and at least one other thwart remote from the middle thwart for paddle storage and support of the canoe during carrying, comprising: (a) two shoulder pad units, each unit having a body made of resilient material, a lateral slot in the body adapted to receive and removably retain the middle thwart of the canoe, a longitudinal slot in the body adapted to receive and removably retain the handle of a canoe paddle and being oriented approximately perpendicular relative to the lateral slot whereby the paddle may be held in an orientation approximately longitudinal with respect to the center line of the canoe when the middle thwart is retained in the lateral slot, and a carrying surface facing downwardly and away from the canoe when the body is engaged in the middle thwart and the canoe paddle, and the canoe is inverted for carrying, and   (b) two paddle hold-down units, each unit having a body made of a resilient material, a lateral slot in the body adapted to receive and removably retain the other thwart of the canoe remote from the middle thwart and a longitudinal slot in the body adapted to receive and removably retain the extended handle of a canoe paddle being held by a shoulder pad unit,   whereby each canoe paddle may be securely fastened in substantially rigid relation to the canoe by a shoulder pad unit and a corresponding paddle hold-down unit, whereby the carrying surfaces of the two shoulder pad units provide an extended support surface for engagement by the shoulders of a person in supporting relation, and whereby the bodies of the two shoulder pad units will support the paddle and the canoe on the shoulders of the person for carrying, and the extended handles of the two canoe paddles will provide hand holds for the person carrying the canoe with which he may steady the canoe as he carries it.